A Quick One
by TFSyndicate
Summary: Steven meets the Blue Diamond in Korea and invites her home. (NOTE: Set after "Steven's Dream", incorporating elements from "The Trial" and "A Single Pale Rose" through "Reunited". Songfic of "A Quick One While He's Away", by the Who-LYRICS REMOVED)
1. Her man's been gone

**The lyrics to the song have been removed to meet FanFiction's rules and regulations, but will be restored when the completed story gets posted on the Syndicate's flagship account on DeviantArt. In the meantime, if you wanna know how the song goes, look it up on YouTube. I recommend the "Rolling Stones Rock 'n' Roll Circus" version.**

* * *

Steven and Greg stood at a safe distance, away from the gigantic, majestic Blue Diamond (and her standard-size Pearl), as she sat before the palanquin of the late Pink Diamond, mourning. It was only a few weeks ago that Steven learned about the Yellow Diamond and her plans to destroy the Earth using the Cluster. It was only a few days later that he stopped said Cluster with Peridot. It was only last week did he learn that there is more than one Diamond to worry about, and his mother, the late Rose Quartz, apparently shattered one of them. It was a surprise to both him and Greg, as Rose never told of her past during their time together.

"I should've done more," said the Blue Diamond, weeping before the abandoned palanquin, "Yellow says it'll all be over soon. I wonder what you would think. This is _your_ planet, after all. I still think it is."

Steven recognized the globs of tears she was shedding. It was the same tears he woke up to. He knew he should've listened to Garnet when she said that coming here was a bad idea, especially on a day like _this_. And then he sneezed. Loudly.  
"Aaaah ahhhhh...CHOO!"  
The Blue Diamond's Pearl looked in Steven and Greg's direction, and spotted them over by the bush they were hiding behind.  
"My Diamond," she said, "I think we're not alone."  
Greg walked forward. Steven followed.  
"Hey! Uh...nice day out, amiright?" said Greg.  
"They appear to be natives, My Diamond," the Pearl remarked.  
The Blue Diamond sniffed and nodded. There was an awkward pause, then Greg broke the ice.  
"Were you close?"  
"Yes, very," said the Blue Diamond, "This was where it happened, where she was broken."  
"I'm terribly sorry," Greg reached up as far as he could and patted the Blue Diamond on her back, "I know how hard it is to move on when you've lost someone."  
"You do?"  
"Yes. I lost someone very important to me, too. I miss her every single day, and I think about her all the time," sigh, "But she's never coming back. That feeling can be so hard to be okay with."

"I hope you don't mind my asking," said the Blue Diamond, holding back a portion of her tears, "But what happened to your loved one?"  
"Well let's see..." said Greg, "How should I put this?"  
Steven was better at this, "She gave up her physical form to have me."  
"Physical...form?" questioned the Blue Diamond, as if it sounds familiar to her.  
"Yes," sighed Steven, "My dad here fell in love with a gem, and the only way for it to work would be if she passed her gem down to me."  
"May we see your gem?" said Blue's Pearl.  
"Well, I don't know. I've been told my mom has a past with the Diamonds."  
And then the Blue Diamond put two and two together, "You wouldn't by chance be talking about..." she shuttered, "Rose Quartz?"  
Greg put his arms around Steven, and looking up at the Diamond, they both nodded. Scared, the Blue Diamond pulled up Steven's shirt until she could see the Rose Quartz gem stick out from beneath. She shrieked, and ran behind her Pearl to hide. Steven ran behind Greg and he hid. Then they realized that both of them were hiding from each other, and slowly came back.  
"I'm sorry," said Steven, "I don't know exactly what my mother did, or how she did it, but I assure you, I didn't come all this way to fight. I came here to get some answers too."  
He stuck out his hand, hoping the Blue Diamond would do the same, so they could make up and be friends. The Blue Diamond did the next best thing: she gently picked up Steven with both hands, and rubbed him against her cheek.  
"I'm happy you and your...dad...understand how I feel," she said, apparently parents are a foreign concept to Homeworld gems, "I didn't know humans could do that."  
As she spoke, the Blue Diamond's Pearl walked forward and, emotionlessly, hugged Greg. Greg blushed a bit.  
"I...uh...don't suppose you could give us a ride home?" he said.  
"But of course," the Blue Diamond wiped a tear from her eye, and put down Steven.  
She raised her arm, which summoned her giant blue arm ship. Her palanquin lowered itself to the ground, and they all climbed aboard.


	2. Down your street

Meanwhile, back at the beach, Amethyst and Pearl looked for something to do to help pass the time. Garnet stood on the deck outside the house, contemplating on what has happened. Steven has ran away. He suspects his own 'moms' are hiding things from him, about his _real_ mom. Did he really suspect Rose Quartz to not be the loving heroine he was told about? If only there was an easier way, that didn't involve surrendering her 'physical form'.  
A shadow, cast by the Blue Diamond's ship, began to appear across the Delmarva Peninsula as it made its way toward its destination that was Beach City. Garnet felt her former Diamond's presence coming from a mile away, and she shivered in fear. Amethyst didn't know what to think, all she saw was Garnet having what she assumed to be an internal crisis between Ruby and Sapphire.

The Blue Diamond landed her hand ship on the top of the hill, wrapping itself around the lighthouse like a temporary art installation. Out of the ship came the Blue Diamond's palanquin, containing the Blue Diamond, her Pearl, Steven and Greg, as it lowered itself from the hand ship to the beach below, at the bottom of the cliff. Steven ran up the steps to his house, before turning to face the Blue Diamond.  
"I think you should wait out here until I say it's okay to come in," said Steven.  
"Please, little 'Steven'," said the Blue Diamond, "Do what you think is best."  
Steven smiled, and went inside. He saw Amethyst trying to teach Pearl how to use a smartphone, as if nothing unusual was happening otherwise. But what he _did_ found surprising was Ruby, no Sapphire: therefore, no Garnet.  
"Ruby?" said Steven, "Where's Sapphire? Don't tell me you've had an emotional meltdown again."  
"I'm sorry," said Ruby, rehearsed, "I...don't know who you're talking about."  
"Wha?"  
"Blue Diamond's here, isn't she? She can't see us like this!"  
"Calm down, Ruby," assured Steven, "If Rose Quartz can shatter a Diamond, I'm pretty sure I can at least _tame_ one instead!"  
"Meh, I wouldn't get my hopes up," said Amethyst, who wasn't really paying attention, "Remember what happened with Jasper?"  
Steven shuddered at the thought. Amethyst turned back to Pearl and continued with her smartphone lesson. Then her eyes opened wide, and her head shot back in Steven's direction.  
"Wait... _is_ Blue Diamond _really_ here?"  
"...Yes."  
Pearl shrieked, grabbed the phone from Amethyst and put it in her gem. They all took off and hid behind the warp pad.  
"I'm _sure_ she means _no harm_!" Steven begged, "She misses Pink, I don't know a thing about my mom, we sorta...clicked."  
That got everyone to calm down, but still on the edge by a pinch. Ruby and Sapphire decided not to fuse back into Garnet in front of the Blue Diamond until she was ready.

At last, Steven invited the Blue Diamond to shrink down to the size of Garnet and come inside. Pearl made them a nice, hot cup of tea for everyone but herself. The room was quiet, except for the waves crashing outside and the occasional sipping noises. To see Steven bonding with a Homeworld gem was one thing. But to be bonding with one of the _Diamonds_ was an extremely different feat altogether.  
"How do you think he _does_ it?" said Amethyst in awe.  
"I don't know," said Sapphire, quietly.  
"What makes him so good?"  
Steven finished his tea, and set his cup down on the coffee table, allowing his now-free hands to give the Blue Diamond a comforting pat on the back.  
"I'm sorry for your loss," he said reassuringly, "I'm having a hard time believing it too. I don't know my mother as much as the others do, but I know she would _never_ shatter a diamond, even if it was for the greater good."  
The Blue Diamond sobbed some more, her tears flowing into her teacup, which was otherwise, also empty.  
"Would you like to come up to my room and I'll teach you how to sleep?"  
"I supposed so," she said.  
She picked up Steven and gave him a hug.  
"You're a good human. Please don't make the same mistakes as your mother."


	3. We have a remedy

'Sleeping' and 'dreaming' were alien concepts (badum chi) to the Blue Diamond, but with little Steven's help, she got the hang of it quickly. Steven found himself spending most of the night not in his bed, but in the arms of the Blue Diamond. They were huge and soft and...he wondered if the Pink Diamond got a similar treatment back in the day.  
The Blue Diamond was the first one to awake the next morning. She rest Steven in his bed, and careful not to wake him up, quietly slipped outside. Steven eventually woke up himself, to the sound of a text coming from his smartphone. He took his phone and saw that Pearl successfully sent her first text ("Hi, Steven!" ). He began to sob with joy, but then realized it was a(nother) heavy load of tears...no doubt caused by the Blue Diamond. He went downstairs and saw Ruby, Sapphire playing a round of cards and Pearl doing her own thing. They were _all_ sobbing gobs of tears; _definitely_ the Blue Diamond's doing.  
"Where's Blue Diamond?" asked Steven.  
"She left," said Ruby.  
"Isn't that a good thing? You can be Garnet again!"  
"She's coming back," Sapphire predicted.  
Pearl followed Steven outside. They found the Blue Diamond sitting on the beach, next to the temple with her back against the cliff. Pearl kept her distance by staying at the door, while Steven bravely approached her.  
"Is everything all right?" he said softly.  
The Blue Diamond acknowledged his presence and nodded. Steven hugged her, or at least _tried_ to, given how huge she was. The Blue Diamond responded by gently rubbing Steven's hair.  
"I can relate. I lost my aunt on my father's side a few years ago. She was my favorite aunt. I found it hard to believe at first, but you know what? I learned to accept that she was gone, and...I moved on."  
The Blue Diamond picked up little Steven and held him close to her diamond.  
"That's easy for you to say," sniff, "You cannot fathom how much I've mourned, what thousands of years of grief has done to me."  
"Do you know _how_ Mom shattered Pink Diamond?"  
"I was hoping _you_ would know."  
"I...don't have any of my mom's memories; just whatever the gems tell me. How do you remember it?"  
"...It was a _sword!_ " she wailed.  
Steven gasped. Pearl didn't; instead, she quietly slipped back inside.

A little while later, Steven was back inside with the Blue Diamond, having another cup of tea. Something didn't sit right with Steven. How could a _sword_ shatter a Diamond? Didn't Bismuth say that Rose's sword could do anything but? And if Rose _did_ shatter the Pink Diamond, how did she get close to her so easily with all sorts of gems standing nearby? _Were_ there gems standing nearby? Steven remembered something about Pearl being related somehow to the Pink Diamond, long before she met Rose Quartz. Maybe he should ask her.  
He looked in Pearl's direction. When she quietly left the conversation from earlier, he could tell that Pearl was acting suspicious.  
"How's your tea, Steven?" she said quite motherly, "Shall I pour you another cup?"  
"Wha..." Steven lost his train of thought, "No...I...uh...don't suppose you...ehhh...know what happened to Pink Diamond, do you?"  
"What? I..." Before Pearl could say anything else, she forcibly covered her mouth with her hands. This also did not go unnoticed. Pearl tried to speak again. Nope. Her hands wouldn't budge. Steven looked up to their guest.  
"Blue Diamond, a word," he declared.  
He led her upstairs to his room, while Pearl pulled out her smartphone and began to tap something.  
"Okay," said Steven bluntly, "I think we have found another witness."  
"Another?" the Blue Diamond was confused.  
"The first one was one of Yellow Diamond's Rubies,"  
"Oh. Right," she nodded.  
Then Steven got another text from Pearl, one that read "I want to tell you, but I can't."  
"So... Now what do we do?"  
"Don't take this the wrong way, Steven," said the Blue Diamond, shedding a single tear, "Pearls are naturally obedient, they do exactly what their told, right down to the cross on a t or a dot on the i. Even if it means...keeping quiet on...how Pink was...shattered..."  
An idea dawned on the Blue Diamond. So did Steven. Coincidently, it was of similar concept. They rushed back down the stairs. Pearl was still there, but her smartphone was gone.  
"Pearl, what is this thing that you can't tell us about?" said Steven, a little too quickly.  
"Steven, slow down and think about what you just asked me."  
And he did. That _was_ a stupid question. What's the point of asking her about something she's (supposedly) not allowed to tell?  
"Please, Pearl," begged Steven, "If you know something about how Pink Diamond was shattered, than I should know about, Blue Diamond should know about it, _Homeworld_ should know about it! Because the sooner we learn the truth, whatever it is, the sooner Homeworld will leave the Earth alone."  
The Blue Diamond was impressed. Pearl sighed.  
"Steven," she declared I need you and Blue Diamond to go inside my gem and get find my phone."  
"Inside...your _gem_?" Steven repeated.  
He turned to the Blue Diamond, and they both shrugged.  
"Uhh...okay."  
Pearl took Steven's phone, "Text me when you find it," and her gem began to glow.

In a blinding flash, Steven and the Blue Diamond found themselves in Pearl's Pearl. Or something like that. The walls were lined with carefully sorted junk. That's Pearl for ya.  
They found another Pearl going through the junk, making sure everything was well-sorted. She turned around to greet her visitors.  
"Oh, Steven!" she picked him up, then turned to the wall of junk, "Where should I put you?"  
"NO! Don't file me! You sent me here looking for your smartphone!"  
Pearl put him down, then searched the wall for the phone. Still nothing.  
"Uh oh. Maybe another Pearl has it," she sighed.  
The Blue Diamond was as equally confused as Steven.  
"Steven, Blue Diamond, you're gonna need to go inside my gem."  
In a moment of deja vu, Steven and the Blue Diamond were flown into the Pearl-in-the-Pearl's Pearl. Now they were in what appeared to be a flashback. Beach City, nightfall, supposedly around the time of Greg and Rose Quartz's honeymoon. And there was Pearl, crying over it all.  
"What was she thinking?" she cried, "Rose can't have a _baby_!"  
Steven looked up to the Blue Diamond, who was also crying at an equal rate.  
"Are you making her cry?" said Steven.  
"...NO!" said the Blue Diamond in a denial kind of way, but since this is a flashback, we'll let it slide.  
Pearl turned around and fixed her gaze at Steven and Blue Diamond. Then her gem glowed. This again.

Another flashback, they arrived in Korea, outside the Pink Diamond's palanquin. Close by was Rose Quartz and her sword. Steven gazed in awe of his mother, but the Blue Diamond noticed that something was up.  
"This is just after shattering!" she declared her realization, "We missed it!"  
"No, you haven't," said Rose Quartz.  
This caught the other two off guard. It was coming from Rose Quartz's mouth, but it came through in Pearl's voice. Rose Quartz turned around to face Steven and the Blue Diamond. In her one hand was the sword. In the other hand...was the Pink Diamond's diamond...whole. On Rose Quartz's head was...another Pearl.  
And once more, Steven and the Blue Diamond found themselves in Pearl's Pearl's Pearl's Pearl. This flashback was set just minutes before the last one. They were in the palanquin, and voices could be heard on the other side. Rose Quartz and Pearl stood at the entrance to the palanquin.  
"Yellow and Blue don't care, they never had," said Rose Quartz, "This is Pink Diamond's colony, and if we pull this off, it will be ours!"  
Pearl blushed and gulped.  
"I want to give this world the the Crystal Gems. I want to live with the humans. I want to live with _you_!" Rose Quartz hugged Pearl.  
"...I don't understand," the Blue Diamond said as she and Steven continued to observe.  
Rose Quartz could be seen handing her sword to Pearl.  
"I can't believe I'm doing this!" said Pearl.  
"Well I can't shatter myself," said Rose Quartz.  
And then then unthinkable happened, that took everybody-Steven, Flashback!Pearl and the Blue Diamond-off guard: Rose Quartz shapeshifted into... _the Pink Diamond herself!_  
Steven and the Blue Diamond followed the other two outside. They saw the Pink Diamond give Pearl a flower to put in her hair, then she picked a pile of dirt and squeezed it into a pile of diamond shards. The Blue Diamond gasped loudly: those were the _same shards_ that the Homeworld had on file!  
"Convincing?" said Rose Qu...no...the Pink Diamond.  
"Very much so, my Diamond," said Pearl.  
"Soon, it will be just _Rose_." The Pink Diamond gently covered Pearl's mouth with a single hand, "And one more thing? No one can _ever_ find out we did this. I never want to look back. For my last order to you as a Diamond, please, let's never speak of this again. No one can know."  
The Pink Diamond looked past Pearl, and Pearl turned around. They both acknowledged Steven and the Blue Diamond's presence. Pearl handed Steven the smartphone he was sent to look for.  
"Sorry to make you come all this way," she said.  
Steven and the Blue Diamond watched as Pearl shapeshifted into Rose Quartz and approached the Pink Diamond to poof her with the sword. Steven looked down at the phone, and texted "Found it," releasing the two of them out of Pearl's Pearl's Pearl's Pearl.

"I've wanted to tell you for so long," said Pearl.  
"Mom was Pink Diamond," said Steven in realization.  
Then they noticed Amethyst, Ruby and Sapphire standing behind them.  
" _WHAAAAAAATTTTTTT?_ " Amethyst seemed to take it well.  
In comparison, that is, because then you notice what was going on between Ruby and Sapphire.  
"She _lied_ to us?" she said, then crying, " _SHE LIED TO US!_ She lied about everything! She held our hands, looked at us right in the eyes, and told us to never question who we are as Garnet. We never questioned ourselves, or her!"  
Before Ruby could say anything, Sapphire took off for the warp pad and disappeared. Steven approached Ruby to hug her. Then he turned back to Pearl.  
"Come on, Pearl," he said, "Help me explain everything to Sapphire."  
Pearl nodded, then they looked up at the Blue Diamond.  
"Blue Diamond, you wanna come with us?"  
The Blue Diamond did nothing but shed more tears again. Then she spoke.  
"Thank you, but I need to rethink my live...my views on Earth."  
Steven handed her a 4x6 glossy of a barn.  
"Do it there," he said, "I know someone there who needs as much help as you do."


	4. My name is Ivor

So Rose Quartz was the Pink Diamond. What else was there to say? It was all a ploy to try and scare the Homeworld gems away. But of course, it only made matters worse, and for the years that followed, the Homeworld put together plan after plan to destroy the Earth. The most recent of the plans, the Cluster™, was also a failure, thanks to Steven and Peridot's intervening.  
The Blue Diamond stepped onto the warp pad, and was off, bound for the barn shown on the picture Steven gave her. With the new thoughts of the Pink Diamond still fresh in her head, the Blue Diamond started weeping more and more as she approached the front door of the barn. She shrunk to a more convenient, and less threatening size, and then knocked. The one who answered was Lapis Lazuli. The Blue Diamond was surprised.

"A Lapis Lazuli?" she said, "Does every Gem that comes in contact with this planet turn...traitor (for lack of a better word)?"  
Lapis sighed, Steven told her she was coming, but she wasn't really in the mood for visitors.  
"I just live here."  
She pushed the barn door open a bit more, allowing the Blue Diamond to step inside.  
"I spent years stuck in a mirror because you thought I was one. Then Steven freed me, and I guess...I owed him one," another sigh, "I don't think I have a place on Homeworld anymore."  
The Blue Diamond was touched. She gently took hold of Lapis Lazuli, and engaged in a hug. As soon as they let go, the Blue Diamond was the first to break the ice.  
"Has little Steven told you yet?"  
"Tell me what?"  
There was a noise coming from the balcony upstairs. Lapis didn't hear the news yet, but Peridot apparently did, while webcamming with Steven on her tablet.  
"WHAT? Rose Quartz was actually _PINK DIAMOND?!_ "  
 _Now_ Lapis heard the news. She took a while for it to sink in, the directed her attention back to the Blue Diamond.  
"I see you're taking it well," they both said to each other.

Truth be told, it was difficult for all three of them to take in at first. Then Peridot let it slide that she and Steven tamed the Cluster, and their moods shifted like that. The Blue Diamond, shrunk down to fit next to Lapis Lazuli and Peridot on the couch, gave Peridot a surprisingly-deserved rub on her head.  
"I was never for the Cluster myself," she confessed, "You should've been on my court. I'm sorry Yellow sent you into this mess."  
Peridot blushed. Lapis turned on the TV and put a tape in. _Camp Pining Hearts_ , episodes 94-100. Then she remembered they had a guest, and swapped that tape for another one; episodes 1-6.  
"What are we watching?" said the Blue Diamond.  
"Steven said you should know a bit about Earth culture and...uh...'human interaction' before you head back," explained Peridot.

To make a long story short, the Blue Diamond's first impressions of the show were similar Peridot's. Percy... Paulette... Pierre... It seemed like a lot to take in at first, but eventually it all made sense to her. They were in _love_. And they were _kissing_. In a manner similar to the way gems _fuse_. It made sense. It somehow reminded her of what Steven told her about how Greg and the Pink Diamond got together and had a son. It reminded her of the Ruby and Sapphire that were banished from her court all those years ago...The _same_ Ruby and Sapphire that lived in that temple-beach-house-thing with _Steven_! It just. Made. Sense.  
Peridot heard a strange ringtone from the other side of the barn, so she went to investigate. To her surprise, it was her old Direct Diamond Communicator™, still in working condition. She thought she threw it away. Fearing it might be for her, she ran back to the Blue Diamond and forced it in her hands. The Blue Diamond was befuzzled at first, but she answered the call anyway. To Peridot's relief, it was only the Blue Diamond's Pearl.  
"There you are," she said, "Steven told me you would be here."  
"Thank you, Pearl," said the Blue Diamond, "What do you need?"  
"I have Yellow Diamond on hold."  
Peridot and Lapis Lazuli ran out of the barn. The last thing they want is to be seen by... _her_. _Again_.

"What the _hell_ are you still doing down there?" the Yellow Diamond demanded through the holo-screen generated by the communicator, "You said you would give Pink _one last_ goodbye before the Cluster."  
"Yellow," the Blue Diamond said, slowly, sniffing, "There isn't...going to... _be_ a Cluster. Pink...Diamond...was never... _shattered_. There never...was...a _Rose_!"  
But all she got in return was a blank stare from the Yellow Diamond. Typical. Even on a good day, she hardly smiled.  
"You're off your throne, Blue," dismissed the Yellow Diamond, "Now hurry up. The sooner the Cluster reaches its peak, the sooner we can wish that miserable planet good riddance."  
"BUT THERE ISN'T A CLUSTER ANYMORE!"  
"Look, Blue, don't make me come down there and do this the _hard_ way."  
The Blue Diamond squinted, a thin stream of tears flowing out.  
" _Bring it on._ "  
End transmission.


	5. Soon be home

We join Steven alongside Greg, and Ruby and Amethyst playing cowboy. They've already got Sapphire to settle down, now they're working on Ruby. They are homeward bound.

Steven's smartphone bleeped, with an incoming text from Peridot. "BD knows about R+S."  
Steven answered the text with another one that says "We're on our way."  
They saw the Blue Diamond walking back to town along the coastline, and ran over to join her. A good walk needs good company some times. The rest of the journey was silent, but triumphant, more or less.

Steven was the first to approach Sapphire when they finally got home.  
"Steven!" she said in delight, "Did you find Ruby and Blue Diamond?"  
"Yes Sapphire," he said comfortingly, "And Blue knows."  
"...She...knows?"  
"About Garnet. I...sent her to the barn to watch TV with Lapis and Peridot."  
Sapphire was skeptic, didn't know what to think. Nevertheless, she went outside to greet Ruby.  
"I'm so sorry, Ruby!" said Sapphire, "I should have never said those awful things to you. That we didn't matter any more; I shouldn't have pushed you away like that. I was wrong."  
"Nah, you were right."  
Then Ruby got down on one knee, with a ring in her hands.  
"Sapphire..." she declared, "Will you marry me?"  
"What? _Marry_ you?"  
"Yes! We can be Garnet even when we're apart."  
Sapphire smiled, squealed and jumped for joy. As soon as they calmed down, then looked up at the Blue Diamond.  
"...Who is Garnet?"  
"Garnet's our love fusion," said Ruby.  
"Garnet? Does that call herself...a Garnet?" she asked in a Shakespearean manner, almost as if she didn't approve of the fusion at all, "I'd picture you looking more like a Cuprite...or a Spinel. Steven made it clear to me: You're in love and I can't stop that. You're Percy, and she's Pierre."  
"Regardless," said Sapphire, "I'm glad you finally approve."


	6. You are forgiven

It was the Blue Diamond's first time to a marriage. Gems doing a human thing, that _was_ a little unusual. But she figured since (many) Gems took on a human shape, it would seem appropriate for them to take on human activities, like...love. The Blue Diamond sat in the back so as not to obstruct the view of the others, as they all watched Steven act as the minister for the occasion.  
"I now pronounce you Garnet."  
They kissed, and fused back into Garnet for the first time in days. Everybody cried, either with genuine joy, or the Blue Diamond was making them cry.  
Then something appeared from somewhere in the sky, and it got closer and closer. For everybody involved, it was something that was unfortunately familiar.

It was the Yellow Diamond's hand ship. Steven ran over to the Blue Diamond to take cover, and, maybe, ask her what's going on.  
"What's going on?" he asked.  
"I told Yellow what happened but she didn't seem to believe me."  
The Blue Diamond stepped back, but stopped when they heard a crunching sound: _The Blue Diamond stepped on the sword!_ Everybody was in shock. Then they looked back up to the Yellow Diamond's hand ship as it headed toward the barn, where the drill hole leading to the Cluster was. Steven's heart pounded, fearing what was going to happen next.

The Cluster, in the shape of a giant arm, emerged from the hole and engaged in an arm wrestle with the Yellow Diamond's hand ship. The hand ship, out of control, was launched in the opposite direction...straight into Steven's house. The Yellow Diamond herself emerged from the surviving portion of the ship, onto the thin layer of water below her. She slowly approached the crashed party.

"Blue," said the Yellow Diamond, "It seems you were right about the Cluster. But nevertheless, I came here to do this the hard way, and I'm not leaving until I've done so."  
Steven sensed that the only way for the Diamonds to like him and the Crystal Gems (and, by extension, the Earth) would be for him to go out and tell the Yellow Diamond that he was the (son of the) long lost Pink Diamond. So he ran out toward the approaching Diamonds.  
"STOP," he yelled as loud as he could, "I'm the one you're missing! I'm Pink Diamond!"  
But he wasn't loud enough. He got stepped on by the Yellow Diamond.

Steven 'woke up' in a strange new area. He realized that he was in a literal state of unconsciousness. Around him were the auras emitted by the people and gems back on the beach. And in the distance were the Diamonds' auras. Steven jumped from aura to aura, with each one feeling a gust of his presence as he passed by. When he got to the Yellow Diamond's aura, he saw that it was stronger than the others, and therefore, harder to make a good-enough contact with. Nevertheless, he persisted. Holding his breath as if to swim, he slowly made his way into the Yellow Diamond's aura, and began to speak.  
"Yellow!" he said, "Pink's fate is different than you think. She faked her shattering!"  
The Blue Diamond recognized his voice, but couldn't see him.  
"It must be Steven!" she said in delight.  
"Who are you talking about, Blue?"  
Steven was launched out of the Yellow Diamond's aura, but then looked down and saw that he was about to emit his own.  
"Please!" he pleaded, "This fighting has to stop. We aren't enemies, We're family. Please listen to me...I need you to know... ** _who I am_**!"

Out of energy and regaining his consciousness, Steven finally awoke. Before him were the Crystal Gems, his dad Greg...and the Diamonds. Both of them.  
Steven was too weak to speak, but tried to anyway.  
"I'm...sorry...for everything."  
The Diamonds stood up straight, keeping their eye contact on little Steven.  
"You are forgiven," said the Yellow Diamond.  
" _You_ are forgiven," said Steven in return.  
The Blue Diamond picked him up and nuzzled her against her giant cheek.  
"You are forgiven," she said.  
And Steven said again "You are forgiven."

 _You are forgiven (You are forgiven)  
_ _You are forgiven (You are forgiven)_ _  
_ _You are forgiven (You are forgiven)  
_ _You are forgiven (You are forgiven)  
You are forgiven __forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven_ _forgiven  
FORGIVEN! __FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEN!_ _FORGIVEEEEEENNNNNN!_

It was decided that Steven go with them back to the Homeworld. Steven agreed, on the condition that Connie and the gems come with him too. The Diamonds were surprised to learn about the corrupted gems, how they were not completely obliterated as originally intended. Steven tried to heal a corrupted gem once, but it didn't stick. The Diamonds said the only way to do it would be for _all_ the Diamonds to do it together. And that goes for the White Diamond, whom Steven had yet to meet.  
They took the Blue Diamond's hand ship, which was still in working condition, to the Homeworld. Waiting for them was the White Diamond's pearl. She had seen better days.  
"Pink Diamond," she said, "Your presence is required."  
Only Steven was allowed in to the White Diamond's quarters. He looked up to see her in all her majestic glory.  
"Baby!" she said, then with a dramatic pause, and finally slowly and operatic, " _You arrreee forrrrrgiiiii_..."  
" _Veeeeennnnn!_ "  
Steven pointed at the White Diamond and said in response " _You_ are forgiven!"  
"You are forgiven!"  
The White Diamond opened the doors to her quarters, allowing _all_ the other gems and Diamonds inside.  
They all said/screamed/sang "You are forgiven,"  
Then they turned and approached the edge of the stage, and took a bow to their audience, as they continued with the repetitive "You are forgiven". The curtain lowered to a close, leaving just Steven standing there.  
"We're _all_ forgiven!" he declared.  
 _(Applause)_


End file.
